(October 7, 2012) - Aaron Yates rode the teams S1000RR again for the season finale at NOLA, finishing tenth in race one after an off track excursion caused by another rider, and fourth in race two with an improved chassis set up. In only his second AMA Pro National Guard SuperBike race back after several years off due to injury, and second race ever with the ESP team and the BMW S1000RR Aaron showed he is still one of the best SuperBike riders in America. On a track neither Yates nor the team had ever seen, Aaron finished first practice in seventh position, ahead of several of the series regulars who had tested at NOLA for two days earlier in the season. A minor crash at the start of first qualifying on old tires meant the team spent most of that session on the backup bike, which slowed progress slightly, and Yates ended the session eleventh. Overnight repairs to the A-bike were successful, and with some slight modifications to the set-up Aaron was able to turn a best lap of 1:41.0 which was good for 6th place on the grid. For race one Yates got a great start and slotted into seventh position at the end of the first lap. Starting lap two Roger Hayden came underneath Aaron and ran very wide, forcing both riders off the track, and they ended lap two in 13th and 14th place. Roger was able to charge all the way back to third by the end of the race, however set-up changes to the S1000RR didn't have the desired effect for the ESP team, and hampered Aaron's ability to make up ground. He still turned in a great ride, pushing all the way to the checkered flag to get the team another hard earned top-10 superBike finish. Sunday morning warm up was a chance to try another chassis setting, and get the S1000RR working closer to Aaron's liking. For race two Yates nailed the start again, and was quickly in the mix with May, Rapp, Knapp, Pietri, Fillmore, and Pegram battling for 6th-12th position. When Roger Hayden and Blake Young collided and fell early in the race, it became a battle for fourth. Yates worked his way through the pack, making clean but aggressive passes and broke free from the group to claim fourth by the checkered flag, five seconds clear of the battle behind him.

Aaron Yates "I would like to say thanks to all who were involved or contributed to the effort that helped get me back on the racetrack, especially Evan Steel Performance for giving me the opportunity to ride the BMW. It was great to get back in the AMA Pro paddock and see my friends and fans after such a long break! Thanks again to the great group of guys for doing an awesome job."

Evan Steel "It's been a big privilege for our team to have Aaron ride for us, he really helped us out with getting our bike going. His experience level in SuperBike has been a huge asset for us, he has plenty of ideas on how to make improvements, it seems we don't get stuck at one lap time very long, he always comes up with a way to move ahead. He is always willing to go ride with our ideas too, and not worried about trying new things on the bike, which makes working with him fun for us. With two track days and half of a weekend for us at Miami due to the weather, he came here to New Orleans and scored our teams best ever SuperBike finish in fourth, but more importantly was closer to the leader at the end of the race than we have ever been, and much closer to third place than we have ever been. It is a huge testament to his abilities that he was able to do that so quickly, the guy is incredible! We have really enjoyed working with him. With some proper testing and a full season of racing he can be right back at the front of AMA Pro National Guard SuperBike no question about it. I also really want to thank Dave from U.S.Mega-Max.com, Donna from Intawishin Consulting, Josh from Speedcell, John from IronHorseMotorcycles.com and Tom Savoca. Without all their support we could not have made the NOLA weekend, and we wouldn't have had a back up bike, which we ended up needing. Thank you!"

Phil Allison "This weekend was a good way to end the season, Aaron did a great job for us! We all really enjoyed working with him, and it's pretty awesome to have a five time national champion riding our bike. We have a great team dynamic going with the crew and rider, these last two rounds have been a lot of fun, as well as very effective. We have achieved our best SuperBike results to date on the S1000RR, and I hope to improve on that next season."

The ESP team is planning to race BMW S1000RR's in AMA Pro National Guard SuperBike next season, ideally with Aaron Yates riding them. We are actively seeking major sponsorship, interested parties can contact Evan@EvanSteel Performance.com.